ETJB

Pretty good, huh?

Monday, December 22, 2003

The Soothing Nature of Destruction

Outside my window at work, laborers are gutting the BlueCross Blue Shield building. It is a non-descript government looking building at 12/Maryland. They've punched a huge hole in one side. Inside, workers pry, hammer, disengage everything —I've seen insulation, file cabinets, drywall, wiring. A Bobcat eases the junk into a modified dumpster. A crane raises and lowers a dumpster. A tractor with a claw pounds, gathers, and scoops the debris into another dumpster. 18-wheelers steadily drive up and haul the mess away.

There is something soothing about watching them dismantle this building outside my window. Like watching a Zamboni, or an anthill, or a plane across a cloudless sky, or a summertime baseball game on tv....

Crazy City Life

On the way to work, I saw a metro police cruiser crashed into a minivan. It looked like the end of a car chase, like the cop veered into the minivan to stop it. Another cruiser was on the scene, lit up. A cop was sweeping up bits of plastic and glass from Calvert Street.

I took a right into the Park. I immediately had to swerve to miss — of all things — a dead possum in the road.

Thursday, December 18, 2003

Readers Respond!

The UpanishadsFuck the Bible. So This is older and more interesting. If you're dosed up on acid or stuck in a hole, Judeo-Christianity-Islam makes no sense. Hinduism does.

Everyone Poops Whether you are an evil dictator hiding from invading imperialists who used to be your ally or some jackass marine from Mississippi shooting a wounded Iraqi soldier in the back as he lies on the ground writhing in pain, you still gotta poop sometime. As Bob Dylan said "Even the President of the United States must sometimes have to stand naked" ...to which I add...and poop.

Monday, December 15, 2003

TOP TEN BOOKS TO READ WHILE IN HIDING

In the small hut near the hole where former president Saddam Hussein spent his final hours of freedom, a dozen books were piled on top of a chest near the bed. There was a book on interpreting dreams, volumes of classical Arabic poetry titled "Discipline" and "Sin," and Fyodor Dostoyevsky's "Crime and Punishment."

Books I may or may not have read, in no particular order. Be sure and e-mail me suggestions. Check back periodically, cuz this is a work in progress:

1. The Brothers Karamozov — It's real long and supposed to have a bunch of characters and story lines. I can then say I'm reading Dostoevsky. Sounds impressive.

2. The Holy Bibble — It's real long and supposed to have a bunch of characters and story lines. I can then say I'm reading God. Sounds impressive. This version has the sequel.

5. Atlas Shrugged — I bought this last summer at the French Market in New Orleans for $1.50. Yeah it's long; yeah, dry too. I've been waiting for a long trip to start it....
I do want to read this book in its entirety to see why Ayn Rand is such an icon for libertarians. Who the fuck is John Galt anyways?

7. The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire — This is suposedly the high bar for historians wanting to write a comprehensive account of an epic event, movement, time period, etc. This could kill 3 years or so for me.

Yikes!

Friday, December 12, 2003

Book Review

(Yeah, I know everybody read it at least a year ago). It's a good book, well written, easy to read.

Bottom line: we really trust a lot of people and greedy assholes every day, every time we eat. It's not just McDonalds either; it's the food at all stores and restaurants. It's not just food either, our consumerist culture is, gee, slightly out of whack: marketing to children, adding crap (literally) to food, animal torture, worker enslavement, etc. If you haven't read the book, I'd be happy to lend you my copy.

There's no doubt in my mind that if not for mass produced meat, a lot more of us would be vegetarians. I know people would be healthier.

Tuesday, December 09, 2003

Gross Injustice

One of our cats, Cap, has a problem. She's always had it. She gets real hungry, chows down real fast, then yaks. Usually on the carpet.
The day before T-giving, I was headed to the car for work and she ran ouside. When I went for her, she was already under the neighbors deck. Since I only had a half day of work, I let her stay out.
There she was, when I got home around 12:30 waiting by the front door. She recognized me when I pulled up and got out of the Honda. Anyway, she ran right inside, drank a bunch of water, chowed a bunch of food, and threw up on the carpet. Charming.
Well sometimes, they get a special treat: a small can of wet food. Cap likes it way more than Boots. So last nite, I broke out a can, Cap was goin crazy. I couldn't open it fast enough. She was getting ANGRY because I was so slow. They both were chowing down as I went upstairs.
I came downstairs later to find a huge mound of shit-colored pudding, right in the middle of the carpet. Thanks Cap!

UPDATE: Got home late last nite after happy hour (around 9). The cats were FAMISHED. So , wise to Cap, I put a small hand full in the bowl. They ate it. After a while, I filled the bowl. Later, I walked downstairs for a glass of water to find... ah, well, you know the story.

Friday, December 05, 2003

"w/TD" = [with Tom DeLay]

Soros Speaks

Money quote:If Americans reject the president's policies at the polls, we can write off the Bush Doctrine as a temporary aberration and resume our rightful place in the world. If we endorse those policies, we shall have to live with the hostility of the world and endure a vicious cycle of escalating violence.

Wholly Shit

Wednesday, December 03, 2003

Run and Fun

So, I've been running more and more. About a week or so ago after work, this guy driving his car with his kid in the passenger seat almost hit me. He was rolling thru a stop sign, I was already in the intersection. I had to wave my arms in front of the windshield. He then came to a complete, jerked stop. As I ran on, he yelled out, Sorry! I gave him a backwards wave. No big deal. It was nice of him to acknowledge it was his fault.

So last nite, I'm running again. It's colder now. I wear my long pants and my hat. I'm stuck at a big intersection (River/Western). The lites change, but not really for me. Then this guy in a pick-up turns in front of me and is checking out my ass! I give him a nod and when he sees I'M A MAN, he looks forward quickly and speeds up River. Maybe my britches are too tight...

I Hate New York

DeLay had argued that a ship docked on the Hudson River, a few blocks from convention headquarters at Madison Square Garden, would allow increased privacy and security for the members of Congress, lobbyists and others who stay aboard.

Why are they going to NY anyway if all they want to do is stay on a parked ship???

UPDATE: I've been told that perhaps the driving force for Delay's ship is NY's anti-smoking statute. I'm sure he wants to skirt their labor unions too. But avoiding the smoking ban in this way does not surprise me. Delay is always seeking to change the rules, or use them in an unintended manner: impeachment, recount, redistricing, recall.
So what's more important? Wrapping yourself in the flag over the WTC site, or not being able to smoke with your fatcat funders?

Same D.C. Story

"Metro is using taxpayer facilities to promote illegal activity," said Micah Swafford, Istook's press secretary. She said the congressman was unavailable for comment.

Graham sees things differently.

"This is petty and punitive," Graham said. "It's a politically motivated, micromanaging bolt from the blue. I suspect it would never have risen to this level if this was San Francisco or another city. Whatever they're running would never have come to the attention of Congressman Istook."

Amen, brother. And if we lived somewhere that 535 congressmen didn't feel like it was their place to meddle, this wouldn't even be a story.

The space was worth $46,250. Istook's proposal would cut twice that amount from Metro's budget "as a warning to other transit agencies."

Or, "let's experiment on and punish these people and make an example." That always works well. Working in Iraq, too.